Church was cancelled because of weather on February 14. Not wanting to skip the first Sunday in Lent, we observed that Sunday on Feb 21. However, our pastor was away, preaching for another congregation to help them celebrate an anniversary.
This is what our pastor would have preached, were he here.
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Memories are a collection of our experiences, which can be both good and bad. And both memories, good and bad, affect us. You suffer a terrible event. Perhaps, you were in a war zone, and your best friend died in your arms. What violence! Months, even years later, flashbacks and nightmares of the event still haunt you.
We use a phrase to describe such turmoil: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. You lack sleep and try to medicate the problem away by using drugs and alcohol. You age before your time. Your bad memories take their toll on your life.
But good memories also fill our minds. They can make you feel better and help bring about a brighter outlook. Even listening to songs attached to happy memories can make you more optimistic than listening to some unknown song. That’s why you turn up the radio when a favorite song enters your ears, and you sing along.
What memories did you bring in the door with you this morning? What are those memories doing to you? We gather at church today for that purpose—to help one another remember—and when we remember, we find hope and strength for living. God Himself commands it: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). “Remember your Creator in the prime of your youth” (Ecclesiastes 12:1). “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19).
This morning’s Old-Testament reading is another place where God commands His people to remember. Here’s the setting: The Israelites are about to enter the Promised Land where they will start a new life. After they plant the first crop, and after the first harvest, God tells them, to take a bundle of produce to the priest at the tabernacle.
You are to affirm and declare in the presence of the Lord, your God:
“A wandering Aramean was my father. He went down to Egypt, living as a foreigner with few family members and became a mighty and populous nation. So, the Egyptians oppressed and afflicted us, subjecting us to back-breaking work. So we cried out to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and he heard our voice and saw our misery, trouble, and affliction. The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and powerful arm, with terrifying terror, signs, and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land—a land rich with milk and honey. So, now I bring the firstfruits of the soil that You, You gave me, O Lord.”
Then set it in the presence of the Lord your God and bow down before Him.
“Start,” God tells them, “by remembering who you are.” But doing so brings up both good and bad memories! Here’s a reminder of some bad ones: A wandering Aramean was my father. He went down to Egypt. He became a nation, but the Egyptians oppressed and afflicted us, subjecting us to back-breaking work. Israel first remembered they were a nation, earlier broken and enslaved.
We’ve been slaves too! Now, this isn’t anything to do with African ancestry or being a descendant of a slave. Our slavery is different; it’s a bondage to sin. We were born into such enslavement. Even worse, we reinforce this slavery in our habitual, daily disobedience to God. Remember, remember who you were. Remember the stupid, selfish, hurtful words you said to others and your harmful deeds!
Maybe, your brain thinks, “Why?” Why remember that? Wouldn’t it be better to forget? The human brain can play such tricks in some extreme circumstances. Our brains can erase blocks of time, certain painful experiences from the conscious mind because of shock or suffering. We call that “amnesia.”
Sometimes, we forget for other reasons. Medication can dull the memory; disease can erase it, too. Some of you may know that both of my parents have Alzheimer’s. Such a cruel and nasty disease, robbing not only memories but even the personality. My mother is now, at times, mean and vindictive. My father thinks we are disrespecting him because, as far as he can tell, his mind is still sharp for sound decision-making.
When it comes to our bad memories, some of us wish we had selective Alzheimer’s. Some of us feel that’s the best way to cope with painful memories. “Just forget about it!”; that’s the philosophy of some. Have you tried that? Have you struggled to forget the painful memories? What about your humiliating failures or shameful sins? It’s not easy. We hope those memories will die, forgotten and alone. But they emerge in our nightmares, unexplainable depression, or even physical illnesses.
God’s Word proclaims: “No.” Remember who you are, where you were, and what took place in your life. But don’t stop there, left wallowing in your guilt or bitterness. Remember something more. Remember what God did for you. “So, we cried out to the Lord… and he heard our voice and… brought us out of Egypt… to this place.”
More than anything else, the Israelites held on to the memory of how God rescued and delivered them—the miracle of the exodus. Each Passover they retold it and relived it. He “brought us out of Egypt… to this place.”
Not “them,” but “us”! “You were there!” God told them. You were at the Red Sea with your grandparents, watching the waters part! You were walking through the waters on dry ground, now safe on the other side. You’re no longer slaves, but a free people, living in your land! Of course, they weren’t there in body, but they were in the shared memory, which God had given to them. They were to remember; otherwise, they would not be there.
God wants us to have such a mind, as well. Even during Lent, we have come through deep waters. We are safe, standing on the other side of Easter. We, too, remember God’s mighty acts of deliverance. We recite them in our Creed. We believe in:
Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God… incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary… [who] was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. On the third day, He rose again according to the Scriptures…
So, were you there when they crucified my Lord? Of course, you weren’t. You weren’t even alive. But—if you remember as God wants you to remember—you were there, in the shared memory that God gave to His people.
So, “were you there when they crucified my Lord?… Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?” (LSB 456). Yes, we were! During this Lenten season, we’re going to the cross, once again—to stand with Mary and John, to look into our Lord’s face, and remember the words He spoke.
And why all this remembering? Am I selling tickets for a Church nostalgia trip? Am I urging you to live in the past? As an answer, let me take you back to the days of Deuteronomy. After reciting the past mercies of God, the worshiper is to say: “now I bring the firstfruits of the soil that You, You gave me, O Lord.”
Did you get that? Now! God designed us to remember the past to help us live in the present—to rejoice in the “now”! God enables the people who remember His mercy to live their lives as His people.
How so? First, they become generous givers to others. “Now I bring the firstfruits that You, You gave me, O Lord.” And he is sincere, for he remembers: God is his provider!
I read of an orange grower in Florida who experienced a devastating setback. A freak storm came and froze much of his crop. A couple of months later, he gave a generous gift—over $2 million—as a donation to his church. When asked about the timing of his offering, he replied: “It was a good time to remember all the bountiful years from times past. I’ve learned: God will provide.” Will we take a moment to stop and remember the good years that God earlier gave to us?
What else? Those who recall God’s mercy also remember something else. They can take courage and comfort in the face of trouble. Does something frighten you? Do not forget: God divided the sea! He raised Jesus from death!
John Chrysostom, a 4th-century Christian pastor, did something similar. The Emperor’s wife threatened to send him into exile. She didn’t like his sermons convicting her of sin. John told her, “You can’t banish me, for this world is my Father’s house.” The Empress became a burning firestorm: “I will kill you!” “No, you cannot, for my life is hidden with Christ in God.” “I will drive away all your friends. No one will be left in your life.” “No, for you cannot separate me from my Friend in heaven.”
Are you going through some ordeal, or is something fearsome stalking you? Stop and remember God’s Word: Nothing can separate you from the love of God (Romans 8:39). So, take courage! Remember: The mercy of God encourages you to take your sins to God and confess them, unafraid. What enabled the prodigal son to head for home? Wasn’t it the memory of how his father treated him?
Standing beneath the cross, Jesus’ prayer to the Father also enters our ears, we who are but prodigal sons and daughters: “Father, forgive them.” The “them” is us! And again we find hope and peace. God forgives! Now we also forgive! That’s why you’re here, in whatever way it happened or for whatever reason. God was drawing you here—to come and remember Jesus. Let that memory wash away all the others.
Don’t be afraid. Unlock the closet door and let them all tumble out—the painful, frightening, bitter memories you kept locked away for so long. Take them to the cross. At that place, He showed you His love. Remember: He will wash them clean. Amen.
